Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other raw materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. The place where such wares are made by a potter is also called a pottery. The definition of pottery, used by the ASTM International, is "all fired ceramic wares that contain clay when formed, except technical, structural, and refractory products". End applications include tableware, decorative ware, sanitaryware, and in technology and industry such as electrical insulators and laboratory ware. In art history and archaeology, especially of ancient and prehistoric periods, pottery often means vessels only, and sculpted figurines of the same material are called terracottas.
Pottery and porcelain is one of the oldest Japanese crafts and art forms, dating back to the Neolithic period. Kilns have produced earthenware, pottery, stoneware, glazed pottery, glazed stoneware, porcelain, and blue-and-white ware. Japan has an exceptionally long and successful history of ceramic production. Earthenwares were made as early as the Jōmon period, giving Japan one of the oldest ceramic traditions in the world. Japan is further distinguished by the unusual esteem that ceramics hold within its artistic tradition, owing to the enduring popularity of the tea ceremony.
In pottery, a potter's wheel is a machine used in the shaping of clay into round ceramic ware. The wheel may also be used during the process of trimming excess clay from leather-hard dried ware that is stiff but malleable, and for applying incised decoration or rings of colour. Use of the potter's wheel became widespread throughout the Old World but was unknown in the Pre-Columbian New World, where pottery was handmade by methods that included coiling and beating.
Dame Lucie Rie, was an Austrian-born, independent, British studio potter working in a time when most ceramicists were male. She is known for her extensive technical knowledge, her meticulously detailed experimentation with glazes and with firing and her unusual decorative techniques.
Maria Poveka Montoya Martinez was a Puebloan artist who created internationally known pottery. Martinez, her husband Julian, and other family members, including her son Popovi Da, examined traditional Pueblo pottery styles and techniques to create pieces which reflect the Pueblo people's legacy of fine artwork and crafts. The works of Maria Martinez, and especially her black ware pottery, are in the collections of many museums, including the Smithsonian, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Denver Art Museum, and more. The Penn Museum in Philadelphia holds eight vessels – three plates and five jars – signed either "Marie" or "Marie & Julian".
Lucy Martin Lewis was a Native American potter from Acoma Pueblo, New Mexico. She is known for her black-on-white decorative ceramics made using traditional techniques.
Michael Ambrose Cardew (1901–1983), was an English studio potter who worked in West Africa for twenty years.
Ladi Kwali or Ladi Dosei Kwali, OON NNOM, MBE was a Nigerian potter, ceramicist and educator.
Mata Ortiz pottery is a recreation of the Mogollon pottery found in and around the archeological site of Casas Grandes (Paquimé) in the Mexican state of Chihuahua. Named after the modern town of Mata Ortiz, which is near the archeological site, the style was propagated by Juan Quezada Celado. Quezada learned on his own to recreate this ancient pottery and then went on to update it. By the mid 1970s, Quezada was selling his pottery and teaching family and friends to make it and the pottery was able to penetrate the U.S. markets thanks to efforts by Spencer MacCallum and later Walt Parks along with Mexican traders. By the 1990s, the pottery was being shown in museums and other cultural institutions and sold in fine galleries. The success of the pottery, which is sold for its aesthetic rather than its utilitarian value, has brought the town of Mata Ortiz out of poverty, with most of its population earning income from the industry, directly or indirectly.
Kids Baking Championship is a competitive reality baking program produced by Levity Entertainment Group for the Food Network. Each week, the children compete to make the best dish, and are judged on presentation, taste, and creativity. All nine seasons of the series have been hosted and judged by actress Valerie Bertinelli and baker Duff Goldman of Charm City Cakes. In 2018, the show enjoyed its highest ratings ever, eclipsing Goldman's earlier show, Ace of Cakes, as the network's highest-rated series ever.
The Great Pottery Throw Down is a British television competition programme that first aired on BBC Two from 3 November 2015 to 23 March 2017. It was then moved to More4 from 8 January to 11 March 2020, and has been broadcast by Channel 4 since 10 January 2021.
Keith Brymer Jones is a British potter and ceramic designer, known for his homeware Word Range with retro lettering and punk motifs. In 2015, he debuted as an expert judge alongside Kate Malone on BBC2's The Great Pottery Throw Down where his readiness to shed tears at the contestants' work attracted comment. He has continued his role and remained as judge when the programme transferred to More4 in 2020 and Channel 4 in 2021.
The Chelsea Potter is a pub at 119 King's Road, Chelsea, London.
Rose Schmits is a Dutch ceramics artist working in the United Kingdom. She is best known for her role in the Channel 4 reality series The Great Pottery Throw Down on which she is the kiln and firing technician. Schmits is from Delft and moved to the UK to study at the City & Guilds of London Art School. She won the Undergraduate Prize awarded by the Artists' Collecting Society in 2018 and the Artists Collecting Society Undergraduate Prize from the City & Guilds of London Art School in 2019. Schmits joined the show in 2021.
The first series of The Great Pottery Throw Down began on 3 November 2015 on BBC Two, and concluded on 8 December 2015. The series was hosted by Sara Cox and was judged by Keith Brymer Jones and Kate Malone. Also appearing was "kiln man Rich", Richard Miller, who acted as behind-the-scenes technician.
The second series of The Great Pottery Throw Down began on 2 February 2017 on BBC Two, and concluded on 23 March 2017. The series was hosted by Sara Cox and was judged by Keith Brymer Jones and Kate Malone. Also appearing was "kiln man Rich", Richard Miller, who acted as behind-the-scenes technician.
The fourth series of The Great Pottery Throw Down began on 10 January 2021 on Channel 4, and concluded on 14 March 2021. The series was hosted by Siobhán McSweeney and was judged by Keith Brymer Jones and Richard Miller. Also appearing was Rose Schmits, who acted as behind-the-scenes technician.
The fifth series of The Great Pottery Throw Down began on 2 January 2022 on Channel 4, and concluded on 6 March 2022. The series was co-hosted by Ellie Taylor, while Siobhán McSweeney was recovering from a broken leg. It was judged by Keith Brymer Jones and Richard Miller. Also appearing was Rose Schmits, who acted as behind-the-scenes technician.
The sixth series of The Great Pottery Throw Down began on 8 January 2023 on Channel 4, and concluded on 12 March 2023. The series was hosted by Siobhán McSweeney and was judged by Keith Brymer Jones and Richard Miller. Also appearing was Rose Schmits, who acted as behind-the-scenes technician.
The seventh series of The Great Pottery Throw Down began on 7 January 2024 on Channel 4, and concluded on 10 March 2024. The series was hosted by Siobhán McSweeney and was judged by Keith Brymer Jones and Richard Miller. Also appearing was Rose Schmits, who acted as technician.
